Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-08-24
DAILY HERALD.
THE BAY CITY.
Editorial Correspondence
from the Metropolis.
OLD-TIME HISTORY.
The Vigilance COmmittee-The
Ending of Great Men in
the Aims House.
SAN Francisco, August 20, 1887.

DEAR HERALD:-A few days resi-
sience in this rigorous climate is
enough to shake the marrow out of
the bones of Los Angelefio. The
weather up to two days ago was what
our cockney globe-trotters would call
''beastly." 1t has moderated some
what, but the afternoon winds make
strect-walking anything but pleasant.
THE SPOTTED BOOM.
The principal topic hereway is the
"boom." San Franciscans are exult-
ant over the recent manifestations at
San Jose, where there seems to have
been an awakening. Enormous trans
fers of land have taken place
there, but they seem SO far
to have been purchases made by San
Francisco capitalists, who scent q
chance for speculation and have put
their money into large tracts in antici-
nation of making a profitable turn.
i see no signs in it of that healthy re-
yiyal in real estate which has for its
basis immigration and new money.
There is also considerable excitement
ACROSS the bay. and spectators are
laying out tracts in Alameda county.
The people in this city are getting
worked up, and possibly there may be
quite a lively sale of lots. So at San
Rafael and other of the choicest places
In this vicinity. Until Eastern buyers,
however. come i'm to purchase homes
it will be kind of swapping OF jack
knives affair. If local business men,
mechanics and laborers purchase at
these sales from their savings they
will only do SO to make turn, not for
the purpose of building up and inn
growing their lots. Yet it may be that
in the great influx of Eastern people
booked for Los Angeles next fall and
winter a percentage of them will slop
over into this section and give a
moderately healthy tone to the boom.
LOCAL ATTRACTIONS.
San Francisco is gradually building
np great attraction in her Golden
Gate park. Every stranger takes a
drive to this suburban Bois de Bologne
and is gratified by the excellence OF
the roadways, the picturesqueness OF
the scenery and the artistic skill that
has been shown at various points In
landscape gardening The great draw
back to the full enjoyment of this
splendid park is the frequency with
which one has to face dense fogs
sweeping in from tie sea, driven by
chilling winds. The beach, the Cliff
House and the sea lions are thrice
told tale" and may interest one for
fhe first time, but become very "chest-
nufty" after that. Adolph Sutro,
however, has translated the promon-
tory behind the Cliff House into a
thing of art and beauty. Extensive
grounds, once forming bleak bench
facing the ocean, have been changed
into beautiful gardens with ser
pentine drives, and the grounds
have been profusely covered
with statuary representing fine copies
Of all the classical figures with which
the cultured world is acquainted. But
the most interesting feature of all this
marvellous change is Adolph Sutro
himself. The history of this man is
study. When | first knew him, early
in the fifties, he and his brother kept
a cigar stand i'm front of Barry & Pat
tens renowned saloon, then located
on the east side of Montgomery street,
two doors south of Sacramento. He
was among the early Comstock ad-
yenturers, and before the mines had
been sunk to any great depth he con-
ceiyed the grand idea which has since
resulted in the famous Sutro tunnel.
With scant means he started upon his
magnificent project. He besleged
Congress for several years with his
bill authorizing him to carry out the
work and giving him a royalty OF y
per ton upon all ores taken from the
ComstOck mines and tapped by his
funnel. Moneyed men became inter
ested with him. The bill was passed.
He then organized company with
a large capital. The work was stead
ily prosecuted. Millions of dollars
worth of bonds were issued. They
were placed principally in Germany,
and Sutro himself withdrew from the
enterprise after it had been completed
with vast fortune of several million
dollars. We doubt whether the tun-
mel has ever paid dollar in divi-
dends. The fact is that before the
tunnel reached the principal mines
they had been worked to depth, in
some cases, of nearly two thousand
feet below its level. But the tunnel
has proved of great advantage to the
mines as waterway to carry OIL the
hot water which is encountered in
them. No one but great financier
could have devised and carried out a
scheme which has resulted as this
tunnel has with Sutro-in making him
alone Of all the company immensely
rich, while the enterprise itself has
earned comparatively nothing.
THE CRUISERS.
Imet, a few days ago, Mr.. Trescott,
of Irving Scott & Co., who are building
the cruiser Charleston, and who have
Just received the contract to construct
one of the five large iron vessels or
dered by Congress. Mr.. Trescott tells
me that the work on the Charleston is
well under way, and that they will be
INstuy W iiCi INCN Cai :
day next. The iron plates have beer
got out at the rolling mills, and are
being tested, and work upon her i'm
mense engines is progressing rapidly
Nothing is set up yet, but the parti
are being got out with the creates
dispatch, so that when everything il
ready the hull will soon be put to
gether. Mr.. Trescott believes that tn,
Charleston, when finished, will stant
all the tests and give satisfaction t.
the government. | sincerely hope so
should this first cruiser prove sue
cess, it will inaugurate very i'm
portant kind of work upon thi
coast; and what is of more i'm
portance, it will show the governmen
what it can depend upon here in cas-
of war emergency.
THE EARLY vIGILANTEs.
For the first time in twenty years